Original Text:
Wiglaf, son of Weohstan, spoke:
"Often when one man follows his own will
many are hurt. This happened to us.
Nothing we advised could ever convince
the prince we loved, our land's guardian,
not to vex the custodian of the gold,
let him lie where he was long accustomed,
lurk there under earth until the end of the world.
He held to his high destiny. The hoard is laid bare,
but at a grave cost; it was too cruel
a fate that forced the king to that encounter.
I have been inside and seen everything
amassed in the vault. I managed to enter
although no great welcome awaited me
under the earthwall. I quickly gathered up
a huge pile of the priceless treasures
handpicked from the hoard and carried them here
where the king could see them. He was still himself,
alive,aware,and in spite of his weakness
he had many requests. He wanted me to greet you
and order the building of a barrow that would crown
the site of his pyre, serve as his memorial,
in a commanding position, since of all men
to have lived and thrived and lorded it on earth
his worth and due as a warrior were the greatest.
Now let us again go quickly
and feast our eyes on that amazing fortune
heaped under the wall. I will show the way
and take you close to those coffers packed with rings
and bars of gold. Let a bier be made
and then let us bring the body of our lord,
the man we loved, to where he will lodge
for a long time in the care of the almighty"
Own Words:
The son of Weohstan called Wiglaf said
"When a guy tries to be all manly
people around him get hurt and we know it because it happened to us.
We can never convince
our lovely prince, who protects us
not to annoy the gold protectors
and let him rest in peace for it was his destiny
and rest under ground until the earth disappears.
He helped us a lot, and the gold will be laid with him
but at the grave; it was very harsh
a fate that made our king to suffer.
I saw everything inside
where we met. I just went in
even though no one welcomed me
underground. I quickly made
a pile of the useless treasures
that we picked from the stack of money and brought here
where the king can see them. He didn't really change,
he was still alive and aware of his weakness
and he asked us to do something. He told me to greet you
and buy the barrow that can bring people
on the day of his death ceremony, to see him for the last time and remember him
and commanding that all men
that have to live and respected him
he was the best warrior in the world.
Now lets move on and go
to the ceremony to see the memorial
and making the grave. I will take you there
and take you to the secret box that has rings
and gold bars, make the bier
and get ready to go out
and we will have to hold the body of our lord,
who we loved, to where he will be buried
and stay there for a long time with Almighty taking care of it
Beowulf lines 3076 - 3109
Podcast:
Original Text:
Wiglaf, son of Weohstan, spoke:
"Often when one man follows his own will
many are hurt. This happened to us.
Nothing we advised could ever convince
the prince we loved, our land's guardian,
not to vex the custodian of the gold,
let him lie where he was long accustomed,
lurk there under earth until the end of the world.
He held to his high destiny. The hoard is laid bare,
but at a grave cost; it was too cruel
a fate that forced the king to that encounter.
I have been inside and seen everything
amassed in the vault. I managed to enter
although no great welcome awaited me
under the earthwall. I quickly gathered up
a huge pile of the priceless treasures
handpicked from the hoard and carried them here
where the king could see them. He was still himself,
alive,aware,and in spite of his weakness
he had many requests. He wanted me to greet you
and order the building of a barrow that would crown
the site of his pyre, serve as his memorial,
in a commanding position, since of all men
to have lived and thrived and lorded it on earth
his worth and due as a warrior were the greatest.
Now let us again go quickly
and feast our eyes on that amazing fortune
heaped under the wall. I will show the way
and take you close to those coffers packed with rings
and bars of gold. Let a bier be made
and then let us bring the body of our lord,
the man we loved, to where he will lodge
for a long time in the care of the almighty"
Own Words:
The son of Weohstan called Wiglaf said
"When a guy tries to be all manly
people around him get hurt and we know it because it happened to us.
We can never convince
our lovely prince, who protects us
not to annoy the gold protectors
and let him rest in peace for it was his destiny
and rest under ground until the earth disappears.
He helped us a lot, and the gold will be laid with him
but at the grave; it was very harsh
a fate that made our king to suffer.
I saw everything inside
where we met. I just went in
even though no one welcomed me
underground. I quickly made
a pile of the useless treasures
that we picked from the stack of money and brought here
where the king can see them. He didn't really change,
he was still alive and aware of his weakness
and he asked us to do something. He told me to greet you
and buy the barrow that can bring people
on the day of his death ceremony, to see him for the last time and remember him
and commanding that all men
that have to live and respected him
he was the best warrior in the world.
Now lets move on and go
to the ceremony to see the memorial
and making the grave. I will take you there
and take you to the secret box that has rings
and gold bars, make the bier
and get ready to go out
and we will have to hold the body of our lord,
who we loved, to where he will be buried
and stay there for a long time with Almighty taking care of it